A2 Key for Schools (KET) Reading & Writing Part 4 Test – Birds, Marine Life & Insects 3
Reading » A2 Reading Tests » A2 Key for Schools (KET) Reading & Writing Part 4 Test – Birds, Marine Life & Insects
Test 1
Questions 19-24
For each question, choose the correct answer.
Why Are Flamingos Pink?
Flamingos are large birds that live near lakes. They are famous for their bright pink feathers and long legs. Flamingos (19)…………… a lot of time in the water. Often, they rest on just one leg to stay warm.
Baby flamingos are not born pink. When they are young, their feathers are grey. They get their beautiful colour from the food they eat! Flamingos (20)…………… for food in the soft mud under the water. They love to eat small red and orange sea animals.
Because they eat so many of these little animals, their feathers slowly (21)…………… pink. If a flamingo stops eating this food, it will stay white. This special food is one (22)…………… why they are such amazing birds. Visitors at zoos always love to (23)…………… photos of them when they are (24)…………… together in the water.
19 A spend B pass C keep
20 A watch B look C see
21 A turn B change C move
22 A reason B idea C problem
23 A do B make C take
24 A standing B climbing C flying
Answer Key & Explanations
19 A (spend): 'Spend time' is the correct English collocation to describe using your time to do something. While in some languages you 'pass' time, this is not a natural collocation in English, and 'keep' does not fit here.
20 B (look): 'Look' is correct because it pairs perfectly with the preposition 'for' to mean searching for something (look for food). 'Watch' and 'see' are related to eyesight, but they do not use the preposition 'for' in this way.
21 A (turn): We use 'turn' before an adjective to describe something changing its physical state or colour (turn pink, turn cold). While a learner might guess 'change', we say 'change colour', not 'change pink'.
22 A (reason): 'Reason' pairs with the word 'why' to logically explain a fact or situation (one reason why). We do not say 'one idea why' or 'one problem why' in English.
23 C (take): 'Take photos' is a fixed English collocation. We do not use the verbs 'do' or 'make' to describe using a camera to create a picture.
24 A (standing): 'Standing' fits the physical context of the birds resting on their legs in the water. Flamingos do not 'climb' in water, and 'flying' contradicts the fact that they are resting in the water together.
Test 2
Questions 19-24
For each question, choose the correct answer.
The Hard-Working Woodpecker
Woodpeckers are interesting birds that live in forests all over the world. They are famous for hitting trees with their long, hard beaks. They do this very fast, which makes a loud (19)…………… in the forest.
Why do they do this? First, they are looking (20)…………… food. Woodpeckers love to eat small insects that live inside the wood. When they open a hole, they use their long tongues to (21)…………… the insects. Second, they hit trees to build a home. They need a deep hole to (22)…………… their babies safe from hungry animals.
Hitting wood all day could hurt other animals, but woodpeckers are special. They have very strong heads to protect them. So, the next time you walk in the woods, (23)…………… carefully. You might hear one of these amazing (24)…………… hard at work!
19 A noise B voice C song
20 A at B after C for
21 A catch B hold C pick
22 A keep B stay C make
23 A watch B listen C hear
24 A pets B insects C birds
Answer Key & Explanations
19 A (noise): "Noise" is the correct word for a loud sound made by hitting something. "Voice" is used for people talking, and a "song" is a musical sound that birds make from their throats, not by hitting trees.
20 C (for): The phrasal verb "look for" means to search for something, which fits the context of finding food. "Look at" means to watch something, and "look after" means to take care of someone.
21 A (catch): "Catch" is the correct verb when an animal gets another animal or insect to eat. "Hold" just means to keep something in your beak or hands, and "pick" is usually used for getting fruit or flowers from plants.
22 A (keep): "Keep [someone] safe" is a very common fixed collocation used for protecting things. "Stay" cannot take an object here (you cannot "stay" another animal safe), and we do not say "make safe" in this sentence structure.
23 B (listen): "Listen" means to actively try to hear a sound (listen carefully). The next sentence says "You might hear", which confirms the focus is on sound. "Hear" is not used as an instruction to pay attention in this way, and "watch" is for the eyes, not the ears.
24 C (birds): The text is talking about woodpeckers, which are "birds". "Pets" are tame animals that live in our houses (like cats or dogs), and "insects" are what the woodpeckers eat, not the woodpeckers themselves.
Test 3
Questions 19-24
For each question, choose the correct answer.
Blue Whales
Blue whales are the largest animals in the world. They live in all the deep oceans of our planet. Because of their huge size, they need to eat a very large amount of food. They spend most of the day swimming slowly to (19)…………… tiny animals in the water.
Blue whales are also famous for their singing. They (20)…………… very loud sounds under the water. These beautiful songs can travel for thousands of kilometres. This is how they (21)…………… to other blue whales when they are very far (22)…………… .
People love learning about these wonderful animals (23)…………… they are so special. It is not easy to see them in the wild, but if you go on a boat trip on the ocean, you might be lucky (24)…………… to see one!
19 A find B look C keep
20 A do B make C give
21 A say B tell C talk
22 A along B out C away
23 A because B so C when
24 A quite B too C enough
Answer Key & Explanations
19 A (find): "Find" fits the semantic meaning of locating food in the water. "Look" is incorrect because it requires the preposition "for" (look for), and "keep" does not make sense in the context of searching for food.
20 B (make): "Make sounds" is the correct English collocation. We do not use the verbs "do" or "give" when talking about producing a noise.
21 C (talk): "Talk" is the correct verb to use with the preposition "to" (talk to other whales). "Tell" requires a direct object without "to" (e.g., tell someone), and "say" is usually followed by the words that are spoken.
22 C (away): The phrase "far away" correctly describes a long distance between the whales. "Far out" or "far along" do not fit the phrase-level meaning of physical distance in this context.
23 A (because): "Because" correctly connects the two ideas by giving the reason why people love learning about them. "So" would create an illogical sentence (meaning they are special as a result of people loving them).
24 C (enough): The phrase "lucky enough to" is a standard grammatical collocation. The adverbs "quite" and "too" must be placed before the adjective (e.g., quite lucky, too lucky), not after it.